April 15, 2014

Spring Clean Your Business Finances for a Less Taxing 2015

Tax time has
come and gone. You had a little trouble but managed to get through it pretty
much ok. Hopefully no hiccups come back to haunt you. Now it’s time to relax
and worry about next year when it rolls around…right?

Not so fast.
This is actually the perfect time for you to prepare for taxes in 2015. There
are several other reasons why you should get your finances in order as well,
some that don’t even have to do with taxes

Here’s a run
through of why you should start spring cleaning now as well as some ideas where
to start.

Business Finances a Little Dusty?

So what’s
the big deal? You got your taxes done in time, why should you even care? Well,
for one, even if you managed to fly through your taxes, they can always be done
faster. If everything is organized like it should be, then your tax time should
be even faster than it was this year. …And that gives you time to get back to
doing what you do best – running your business.

But that’s
not all. You don’t just have your federal taxes to worry about. There are other
taxes like quarterly estimated taxes and sales taxes to pay. The more organized
your finances are, the faster you can handle all these taxes.

Spring
cleaning your finances now also gets the rest of your business in order. It’s
one thing to “feel” how well your business is doing, but another thing entirely
to see the cold, hard facts. Getting real info can help you refocus and
re-energize your business well into the future.

What to Spring Clean

So what all
should you go about spring cleaning? While it’s easy to spot physical things in
your house to clean – cobwebs in the corner, dust on the desk, etc. – cleaning
something like your finances take a little more work.

There are
some good places to start, though. For one it’s time to move your finances to
the digital age if you already haven’t. Are you still tracking income in and
expenses out with a spreadsheet? Sign up
for GoDaddy Online Bookkeeping today and import all of your business
finances. This way you know all your income and expenses 24/7.

Another area
to pay attention to is your physical receipts and other paperwork. It’s also
another area to move your business into the digital age. Take all those papers
and receipts and scan them into your computer, or sign up for a service like Shoeboxed. Now you have them all in one
place and easily searchable rather than scattered all over your office or
house.

Since a big
part of this spring cleaning is “getting ahead of the game,” you should also
pay attention to your calendar. Try to schedule as much of your business life
as possible – tax dates, meetings, and goals you want to achieve. This can help
you get ahead not just with your finances but also with the rest of your
business.

One last
thing to spring clean: your expenses. There is always something you can cut out
of your business model, even if it’s shaving off a few dollars here and there.
This can help you increase your bottom line and move your business into a whole
new world.

Are you
going to spring clean your small business finances this year? What task are you
going to tackle first?